Preview:Marseille vs Paris Saint-Germain - prediction, team news, lineups

The latest edition of Le Classique will take place on Sunday when Marseille welcome Paris Saint-Germain to Stade Velodrome for matchday five of Ligue 1.

This will be the 110th meeting between the two sides across all competitions, arriving at a time when Les Olympiens sit eighth in the standings while Les Parisiens occupy top spot.

Match preview

Having finished second last term, a hefty 19 points behind PSG, Marseille entered this campaign hoping to mount a stronger challenge against the powers that be in Paris, but Roberto De Zerbi has not enjoyed the dream start to the campaign.

The Italian has endured a slow beginning to his second season in charge, marred by off-field fracas and inconsistency, with Les Olympiens alternating between victories and defeats, their six points leaving them already six adrift of the reigning champions.

Although De Zerbi’s men were rampant last weekend, smashing four past Lorient without reply, they failed to carry that momentum onto the continental stage, where the French side fell 2-1 to Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu.

Timothy Weah’s opener made him Marseille’s first Champions League debutant scorer in sixteen years, yet it proved little more than a footnote as the Olympians squandered their numerical advantage, undone by Kylian Mbappe’s strike from the spot.

Back in Ligue 1, Marseille enter this weekend’s Le Classique knowing that victory would not only close the gap at the summit but also secure a seventh straight home success in the top flight for the first time since between August 2014 and January 2015.

However, recent encounters at Velodrome have been largely one-sided, with PSG unbeaten in twelve league visits and winning nine of them, so the visitors appear the most likely to bring an end to the hosts’ flawless sequence at home.

Indeed, this clash has looked less like a derby of late, as the Parisians have won each of the last nine in Ligue 1, including a 3-0 triumph in last season’s corresponding fixture, while not conceding in their last six top-flight trips to Velodrome.

There seems little to suggest that this dominance will end for a side that has secured victories in all five matches since the season properly got underway, keeping four clean sheets in that stretch.

Unlike the hosts, PSG enjoyed a productive continental outing in midweek, firing four past Atalanta in the Champions League to make a perfect start to the defence of their 2024-25 crown.

In Ligue 1, Luis Enrique’s men sit two points clear at the top of the table with 12 points, scoring 10 goals – the second most in the division – while conceding only three, and they will aim to stretch that advantage further this weekend.

Marseille Ligue 1 form:

Marseille form (all competitions):

Paris Saint-Germain Ligue 1 form:

Paris Saint-Germain form (all competitions):

Team News

Marseille enter this weekend’s Le Classique without winger Hamed Traore, who missed the midweek trip to the Bernabeu with a thigh injury, so Weah is almost certain to retain his spot on the left flank after an impressive display.

Summer signing Nayef Aguerd also stayed behind in Marseille after sustaining a head injury on his debut against Lorient, leaving his involvement this weekend in serious doubt.

Centre-back CJ Egan-Riley is back available after missing last weekend through suspension, although a starting berth is far from guaranteed.

PSG eased past Atalanta in midweek despite being without Ballon d’Or frontrunner Ousmane Dembele (calf) and winger Desire Doue (thigh), with both attackers again unavailable for this clash.

Central midfielder Joao Neves limped off in that game and is ruled out, while defender Lucas Beraldo faces a race against time after suffering an ankle sprain.

Marseille possible starting lineup:

Rulli; Medina, Pavard, Balerdi, Murillo; Kondogbia, Hojbjerg; Weah, O'Riley, Greenwood; Gouiri

Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:

Chevalier; Mendes, Marquinhos, Pacho, Hakimi; Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Ruiz; Kvaratskhelia, Ramos, Barcola

We say: Marseille 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain

PSG have shown time and again that their success comes through collective effort rather than individual brilliance, so the absence of star names is unlikely to derail the reigning champions, who look well placed to extend their dominance in this fixture with another victory on Sunday.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.